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Nagaraja
From a nightmare of horror and legend step the Nagaraja. A bizarre bloodline of flesh-eating witches, there vampires have been hunted to near extinction in modern nights by political enemies and the ghosts upon whom they once preyed. A few of these monsters still prowl the darkness, but their numbers are thankfully few. The Nagaraja have never been particularly forthcoming with their origins, but a few learned Kindred suspect that they grew out of a Middle Eastern death-cult. Whispers of an arcane connection with other sorcerers also surface when the Nagaraja are the topic of discussion. The rumors and facts concerning these Kindred are almost inseparable -- the Nagaraja are too few to ask directly, and none have been forthcoming anyway. Some wonder if they are Cainites at all or, rather, a failed experiment intended to recreate the results of the Tremere. Once members of a sect calling itself the Black Hand (but apparently distinct from the Sabbat), the Nagaraja have little impact on the modern nights. They are great compilers of evil secrets, however, and command death-magic with equal or greater ability than the Giovanni. Like all necromancers, the Nagaraja are usually attributed some tie with the Venetians, but nothing exists to substantiate this aside from their knowledge of the dead. It would be misleading to say that the Nagaraja have fallen from grace, because they never enjoyed a period of "grace," but nonetheless, the bloodline has lost much. Its remaining few members eke out unpleasant, solitary unlives, and many are haunted by the ghosts they once commanded. The "dietary" habits of the Nagaraja also conspire to keep them away from other Kindred, who are put off by any sort of eating, much less the consumption of dead human flesh. Still, a few dozen Nagaraja persist, gathering the unholy secrets of death sorcery and creeping among the periphery of vampire society. Nickname: Flesh Eaters Appearance: Most Nagaraja dress subtly, as their unpleasant weakness already draws enough attention to them: They wear whatever most people around them wear. Physically, many Nagaraja appear to be of Northern African, Asian or Middle Eastern descent. Hailing from such dark-complected stock, as vampires, these individuals often have unhealthy, ashen skin. Unlike other vampires, the Nagaraja do not have conventional, retractable fangs; rather, they have mouths full of vaguely pointed teeth. Most Nagaraja also carry sacrificial daggers, scalpels or other cutting instruments, which they use to excise the flesh that gives them their sustenance. Some rumors attribute them with a "third eye" similar to that of the Salubri, but none of these claims have ever been substantiated. Haven: When they have the luxury of establishing a permanent haven, the Nagaraja typically prefer to create comfortable dwellings, which may house laboratories and various "storage facilities" for their vessels. These havens usually have an inclination toward the macabre and may be found in such places as mausoleums, abandoned buildings, disused hospital wings and even high-rise condominiums. Anywhere the Nagaraja can cultivate a modicum of privacy may become her haven. Background: The numbers of the Nagaraja are so small as to make any generalization about their backgrounds speculative at best. Some were priests or cultists in their mortal lives, and few were less than 40 years of age at the time of their Embrace. Most seem well-to-do, the better to hide their eccentricities. Character Creation: Nagaraja usually have solitary or selfish concepts and Natures, though their Demeanors may be practically anything. Mental Attributes are usually primary, as are Knowledges. The most common Backgrounds for Nagaraja are Contacts, Resources and Retainers, though a few twisted Mentors sometimes Embrace childer. Few Nagaraja bother to maintain their Humanity, opting instead for a variation of the Path of Death and the Soul or the Path of Bones to keep the Beast at bay. Clan Disciplines: Auspex, Dominate, Necromancy Weaknesses: The Nagaraja require raw flesh in addition to blood to survive. Although these Kindred may subsist on blood alone, their bodies atrophy if they do not partake of human meat -- for every night a Nagaraja goes without an intake of flesh, he loses on cumulative die from all his Physical dice pools. Eating one point worth of flesh restores one die to these pools until the vampire has "caught up." A human body is assumed to have 10 "flesh points," which work just like blood points: A Nagaraja consuming one flesh point increases his blood pool by one. Unlike blood points, however, taking a "flesh point" from a vessel does one health level of unsoakable lethal damage to that vessel. The flesh the Nagaraja consume must be relatively fresh, though not necessarily "alive." Indeed, some Nagaraja keep stores of ritually preserved corpses hidden within their havens, and rumors of "Kindred-eaters" follow them as well. This weakness does not allow the Nagaraja to eat other foods or consume other liquids. Organization:' Until a catastrophic war within the denizens of the Underworld destroyed the sect to which they belonged, the Nagaraja congregated in the lands of the dead. Since being driven forcibly from that realm, however, the few remaining Nagaraja have made their own fates, leaving their minimal organization behind. A cabal of Nagaraja is reputed to have sought protection among the Cathayans of Korea, but this small group is suspected to be an anomaly. Ultimately, the Nagaraja are too few to have an extensive bloodline structure and exist instead as isolated, freakish loners when they can be found at all. They rarely even meet with others of their kind, as they hoard their precious secrets from everyone, including others of their clan. ' Quote: "I have seen hell -- and made my haven in its pits. Take your leave before I send you there."